Old Friends
by tai'sgirl23
Summary: Rewrite. SPOILERS! Couples inside. Time has passed since Atemu left, and life isn’t too great for Yuugi Mutou. With his friends out of town and Christmas coming up, Yuugi feels alone. But when an old friend pays a visit, things change…
1. Chapter 1

This was my first Yu-Gi-Oh! story I ever wrote. After re-reading it, I thought I'd go over it and make a few changes. I hope it's better than it was before!

Warning: SPOILERS- this fic takes places after the end of the anime. The main couple is Yuugi x Anzu, but there are hints of Honda x Shizuka.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

-I-

'_It's strange, how time seems to pass by like a blur, without you noticing. Well, that's how I feel anyway._

'_Time has passed since I had to duel Mou Hitori no Boku in the ceremonial battle in Egypt, and to give you a hint at how much time has passed, I'm 19 now. I'll let you do the maths. But it still feels like yesterday when Mou Hitori no Boku lost the duel and had to return to afterlife. But I can tell you, a lot has changed since I returned to Japan._

'_As I said before, I'm 19 years old. I'm still the same person as I used to be- kind, caring- and I still look the same-apart from the fact that I've grown a bit since the last time you saw me. I've only grown a few inches though. I'm about the same height as Mou Hitori no Boku, maybe taller, but I'm still nowhere near Jonouchi and Honda's height._

'_My life has changed a little too. I graduated from Domino High, and am now attending the local university, where I'm studying Ancient Egyptian History (which I'm getting high marks in)…I wonder why?…). I guess that all those adventures with Mou Hitori no Boku…I mean… Atemu, and the Sennen items has really got me interested in Egyptian History. Plus, I get to go on digs with jii-chan! But when I'm not on digs in Egypt-I've only been on one short one so far-or studying at home, I work in the game shop. After all, I will be taking over the rights to the shop as soon as I'm ready. And besides, its not like I have anything else to do since my friends have left me._

'_The Kaiba brothers are still running their company, building new Kaiba Lands all around the world, creating new duel disks, and even setting up a duelling academy right here in the city. It's very popular with kids that want to be pro duellists. _

'_Jou and Honda left a few weeks ago, but it seems like they've been gone forever. After graduating from school, they decided to take a year off before studying at uni. They got a few jobs to keep themselves busy during the day, but a few weeks ago, they left to visit Jou's sister, Shizuka, since it's the Christmas season. Honda went because he and Shizuka are together now. Took them a while, didn't it? I'm happy for them, really I am, but seeing them together reminds me of my closest and oldest friend…_

'_Speaking of Anzu, she's in America now. After leaving school, she got a place in one of the world's best dancing schools. She's only been there for about a year and a half, but she's already become a huge star, both over there and here in Japan. There are posters of her everywhere, and every time I see them it reminds me of how much I miss her, and how I regret not telling her how I really feel. Ah well, it's Christmas tomorrow, at least I've got that to look forward to.' _

Yuugi Mutou walked through the front door of the Kame Game shop, closing it behind him, making sure that the sign on the front said 'open'. 9:30am. Time to get to work. The tri-coloured hair teen looked up at the counter, expecting it to be empty, but instead saw his grandfather waiting for him. He smiled down at Yuugi in his usual cheery way. Yuugi smiled back faintly.

"Good Morning Yuugi!" said Sugoroku cheerily. "Did the walk help?"

Recently, Yuugi had been feeling (and looking) depressed, due to Christmas coming up and all his friends were out of town for a while and wouldn't be able to make it to the celebrations. He had had a lot on his mind, and because of this, he would space out for a while, which Sugoroku had found hard not to notice. So, when Yuugi had come down for breakfast that morning, he had suggested that Yuugi should go for a short walk before the shop opened in the fresh morning air-even though it was freezing cold-to clear his head. And if when he came back he didn't feel like working, Sugoroku was more than happy to work in his place.

"Hai jii-chan," Yuugi said whilst walking up to the counter. He took off his jacket and hung it on the back of the door that lead to their living area. "The walk helped a lot."

"Are you sure?" asked Sugoroku, not entirely convinced. "Because you know that you can take the day off if you still don't feel up to working."

"I know but I can handle it. Besides, you worked all day yesterday, so it's only fair that I work today."

At first, Sugoroku was reluctant to let Yuugi work. He still looked a little worse for wear. But once he saw the determination in Yuugi's eyes, his heart softened and he changed his mind.

"Alright Yuugi, I'll let you work today," he said whilst making his way to the part of the building where he and Yuugi lived. He stopped at the doorway and turned to face his grandson. "But call me if you get tired or need a break."

"I will jii-chan. Thanks."

-I-

The day passed just like every other day did for Yuugi; dull and uneventful. The mailman came in the morning to deliver the days post. As Yuugi went through the mail, separating the bills and Christmas cards from everything else, he found that he had been sent two letters. He opened the first one and found it was from Jonouchi and Honda. It read;

_Dear Yuugi,_

_Hey bud, how are you? Me and Honda are having a great time, especially Honda who keeps kissing my sister whenever I'm out the room! (How could I not kiss her?Honda)_

_Shizuka says 'hi' and says that she'll try and visit again when ever she can._

_I hope you're doing OK Yuugi, 'cause we both really miss you and can't wait to get home so we can all hang out again!_

_Before we go, we just wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas Yuugi. Make sure you enjoy yourself and save some Turkey for me! You know how much I love your gramps cooking! (Jou)_

_From your best buds,_

_Jou and Honda_

Yuugi was glad to hear how well his friends were doing and smiled as he read Jonouchi's letter. After reading it he picked up the second envelope. Judging by the various foreign air-mail stamps that had been used, this second letter was from his oldest and closest friend, Anzu. Her letter read:

_Dear Yuugi,_

_Thanks for your last letter. It really cheered me up after a long and tiring day. You don't know how much I miss you guys!_

_Things are really hectic over here right now, as I'm suppose to be appearing on TV shows left, right and centre. I've also got to practise for this huge show that's coming up so I'm never out the dance studio. But there's a slight problem: I have no idea where the show is going to be! A lot of help that is!_

_I hope you're alright Yuugi, and I hope that you have a good Christmas. I'm sorry I couldn't be there in person, but I'll be there in spirit!_

_With love from your dearest friend,_

_Anzu_

Yuugi was happy that his friends still wrote to him and that they hadn't forgotten about him, but the letters reminded him of how far apart they were. Would they ever be as close as they used to be?

-I-

The shop was busy that day, since it was the last day to shop before Christmas and there were many late shoppers about, so Yuugi always had something to do. Most of the customers were parents who had come into buy a new game that had just been released, or were kids coming in to buy a present for a relative or friend, but occasionally a few duellists that Yuugi recognised can in to buy some Duel Monster cards.

There were two kids that Yuugi particularly remembered. They had come in to buy some Duel Monster cards, and told Yuugi that they wanted to be the world's best duellist, just like himself. They were two young boys; one had short blonde hair, and was very loud and confident, if not a little dumb; the other kid was a little shorter than the first, had spiky black hair with hints of red highlights, and was more quiet and shy compared to the first. To Yuugi, they reminded him of Jou and himself, only younger.

'_One things hasn't changed these past couple of years. I'm still the world's best duellist and King of Games. Something which Kaiba is still unhappy about. In fact, I think my next duel with him is sometime before New Years. Fun…'_

Later that evening, when the shop was closed up and the days takings had been counted and put away, Yuugi sat by his desk in his room, flicking through an old book. But it wasn't just any book; it was a scrapbook, which he had made over the years since he became friends with Jou and Honda. It was filled with all sorts of clippings from newspapers and magazines, and old photos of him and his friends when they were still in High School. There were pictures of them all together in Duellist Kingdom, their hometown during Battle City, even some of them when they were in Egypt. There was one particular picture that always caught his eye. It was of him and Anzu in Egypt after they had just arrived. The pair had one arm wrapped around each other and had huge smiles across their faces. As Yuugi looked more closely, he could see that they were both blushing slightly. A small smile appeared on Yuugi's lips.

Photos weren't the only things in the scrapbook. There were also newspaper articles of whenever Yuugi won a tournament or an important duel, complete with a few pictures of the duel (How these pictures had been taken Yuugi did not know). Only the person in the photo's duelling wasn't Yuugi, but Atemu. Sometimes, it _was_ Yuugi in the photo, after the duel had taken place and he was collecting some sort of prize. But most of the time, Yuugi could tell that it was the Egyptian Pharaoh.

Memories started flashing in his mind of all the duels they faced together; of how they became such good and close friends in such a short space of time; how they discovered Atemu's past together; how Atemu had managed to rescue Yuugi's soul when it was captured; how Yuugi defeated him, sending him to the spirit world…

Yuugi slammed the book shut. All those memories were starting to make him feel depressed again, not to mention giving him a headache.

"Mou Hitori No Boku…Anzu…Jou and Honda…all of them are gone…I'm all alone now…"

Yuugi felt a few tears fall down him cheek, and land on his book with a small 'plop'. Sniffling, he dried his eyes, knowing that his friends wouldn't want him to cry. He looked at the clock beside his bed. 11pm. Time for bed. Yuugi turned off his lamp, and climbed into bed, hoping that his dreams would be happy and peaceful.

He had never been so wrong in his life…

_He was trapped, alone in the darkness. He tried calling out, but his voice made no sound. Panicking, he frantically looked around for signs of life. But all he could see was darkness. Complete and utter darkness. He was all alone…_

_That's when he heard it; laughter. Dark, evil laughter, echoing all around him. Yuugi looked around anxiously for the source of the laughter. He soon found it. Out of the shadows stepped out every single person Yuugi had hoped he'd never see again. All his old foes- Pegasus, Marik, Dartz- every single person he and Atemu had faced in order to save the world were closing in on him, trapping him in a circle._

_Yuugi was scared, more than he had ever been before. But when all hope seemed lost, Yuugi spotted a group of familiar people, just outside the circle. His friends were all grouped together – Anzu, Jou, Honda, even Atemu was there._

"_Mou Hitori no Boku! Anzu! Anyone! Help me!" he called out to them. "Please! Help me!"_

_But they couldn't hear him. There were too far away, disappearing into the shadows. Yuugi tried and tried again to call out to them, but it was too late. They were gone. He was left alone, his old enemies now only metres away. He didn't know what to do. He was trapped. This was it. This was the end. He screamed out in fear as they were only inches away…_

Yuugi bolted up in his bed with a scream. Panting, he tried to catch his breath back, whilst wiping the cold sweat from his head. The images of the nightmare were still fresh in his mind.

'_What a horrible dream. I'm glad it was only that: a dream. But…then again…it wasn't. Just like in that dream…or should I say nightmare…I'm alone. My friends are nowhere near me. They can't help me or talk to me! I'M ALL ALONE!'_

Yuugi felt his eyes burn as more tears formed and fell down his face. This time, he let them fall. They had been kept inside for so long, they needed to fall. He couldn't keep them locked away any longer…

…But that's when he noticed something odd.

It was close to midnight, yet the sky was as bright as if it was morning. Curiously, Yuugi looked out his window, and soon saw the source of the light. It was a star. The brightest star he had ever seen.

"What a strange star," he commented to himself, "I've never seen anything like it…" And then he got an idea. "Hey! Maybe it's a special star which grants you a wish, like some sort of Christmas miracle! It may be corny, but I might as well give it a try. I have nothing to lose." Yuugi closed his eyes, put his hands together, and focussed, hard. "Oh great start burning in the sky, please grant me this one wish. Please let me be reunited with my friends soon!"

Yuugi focussed hard on his wish for a few more moments, then slowly opened his eyes. He had expected something to happened. He just didn't know what exactly. Maybe there should've been a flash of light, or maybe something had happened to. He checked himself over. He didn't look or feel any different. How was he suppose to know if it worked?

"I guess it didn't work," he sighed in disappointment. "Oh well, I'd better get…back…to…what the hell?"

The sky had suddenly become a lot brighter. The star that Yuugi had wished on was shinning brighter than it had done before. Yuugi felt himself before hypnotised by the white light. It was so calming…so peaceful…

Then, suddenly, a giant burst of light shot from the star, straight into Yuugi's room. Yuugi covered his eyes to protect them from the blinding light, but made sure that he could still see what was happening by looking through the gaps between his fingers.

"What's going on?" he cried out.

Yuugi noticed something coming down the ray of light into his room. A shadow of some sort. As he looked closer, he could see that it looked like a person.

Slowly, the light from the ray died down, but not completely. As the light began to fade away, Yuugi could see the shadow become clearer and clearer. He was right, it was a person, and they looked strangely familiar. As he looked more closely, the light dying away around him, he could see that the figure was wearing some very interesting clothes. It looked like some Pharaoh's attire from Ancient Egypt. The figure had very similar hair to himself, only this person had a few more blonde streaks here and there. Yuugi's heart beat quickened in excitement as he recognised the figure standing in his room.

"It can't be…but it is!…"

The light faded, leaving a small glow emitting from the ghostly figure. A smile crept up on Yuugi's face as the familiar figure smiled down on him.

"Mou Hitori no Boku!" Yuugi cried with joy.

-I-

To be continued…

-I-


	2. Chapter 2

-1Since this story was pretty long, I decided to put it into 2 chapters to make it easier to read. So, here's the second part to 'Old Friends'.

-I-

"Mou Hitori no Boku!" Yuugi cried with joy.

Atemu smiled down on his friend. It had been a long time since they had last spoken, or even seen each other, yet they never forgot one another. Friends never did.

"Hello aibou," Atemu greeted happily. "It is good to see you again."

"It's good to see you too, Mou Hitori no Boku," Yuugi returned the greeting. The smile on his face grew with each passing second, and it wasn't fading any time soon.

There was a small pause in which the two old friends didn't know what to say to each other. It had been so long since they'd seen each other, and there was so much to tell that they didn't know where to begin. After a few moments had passed, Yuugi spoke up.

"So…er…how is it?" he asked carefully. "The afterlife, I mean…"

To say that Atemu was taken aback by this question was an understatement.

"Well…er…it's OK," Atemu answered, struggling for words. "I mean, do not that this the wrong way aibou, it is good seeing everyone from Egypt again…It is just that…it is…not…the same…as being with you and the others."

"I know what you mean," Yuugi sighed softly, looking away slightly.

Atemu looked down at his old hikari. He could easily tell when something was wrong with his former vessel. They had shared the same body for quite some time after all and knew each other as well as they knew themselves. Something was bothering him, but what?

"So, how have you been aibou?" Atemu asked after another brief pause.

"Oh, I've been OK, I guess," Yuugi answered, picking his words carefully. He didn't want Atemu to know how miserable he was. "I graduated from school and I'm now studying Ancient Egyptian history at university. It's pretty interesting actually. I've been on a couple of digs and I can read a bit of hieroglyphs-"

Yuugi cut off, not wanting to say anymore, fearing that he would pour his heart out at any second. He didn't want Atemu to listen to his worries; he had more important things to do, being that he was the spirit of an Ancient Pharaoh. He was sure Atemu had other more important things to worry about.

Atemu looked down at Yuugi. He was hiding something from him, he knew it. He was keeping something bottled up inside that was screaming to get out. He had to find out what it was, before it controlled Yuugi. After all, he knew first hand what it's like to be controlled by your emotions. And that no one should ever keep their feelings bottled up inside. It would only destroy them.

"Aibou, there is something else bothering you," Atemu said sternly. He came over and sat on the end of Yuugi's bed.

"Nani?" Yuugi looked up in surprise. "Hai, there is. But how did you-"

"Know?" Atemu interrupted. He chuckled. "Aibou, even though we do not share a physic bond anymore, I can still read your thoughts like a book. So, tell me what is wrong? I would like to help you."

"Well," Yuugi began, still a little hesitant. "It's just that…ever since you left after the ceremonial battle, I've been wondering what life would have been like if you hadn't left. What would I being doing if you had stayed here on Earth with me? And also, Anzu's been gone over a year now, and Jou and Honda have been gone for a while too, and with you and all of them gone, I'm left on my own. It feels like they've abandoned me! I'M ALL ALONE!"

Yuugi clenched his fists, trying to hold back the fresh tears that threatened to fall. Unfortunately, one fell silently down his cheek. _'Man, how many times am I gonna cry in one night?'_

Atemu watched Yuugi with wide, shock eyes. In all the years that he and Yuugi had been connected by the Sennen Puzzle, he had never seen Yuugi this…this…_depressed_ before. He didn't know that his departure, and his friend's, could cause so much pain. Just seeing his old partner like this was enough to break his heart. He had to help him…somehow…

And that's when it hit him. He knew exactly what he had to do. He stood up and walked over to where Yuugi sat in his bed. He placed an arm around Yuugi, and gave him a comforting hug.

"Aibou, you are never alone," he said softly

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Yuugi asked, his voice shaking slightly.

Atemu broke the hug and placed a comforting hand on Yuugi's shoulder. "Haven't you listened to any of Anzu's speeches these past few years? All of us share a special bond of friendship, which can never be broken. This means that we're never truly alone. Our friends are always with us, in our heart. They will always be in _your_ heart, aibou. So no matter where we all are in the world, we will always be there for one another…"

And as if on queue, Yuugi felt his hand begin to tingle. He looked down and saw that lines on the back of his hand were glowing. But these weren't any 'normal' lines (if you could call glowing lines on the back of your hand normal). When Yuugi duelled against Kaiba, and his friends couldn't be there to watch him and support him since they had to take Yuugi's grandfather to the hospital, Anzu had drawn on a smiley face on Yuugi's, Jou's, Honda's and her own hand to represent their friendship and the bond they share. The ink many have worn off long ago, but their friendship was as strong as ever. And it was these lines that were glowing now.

As Yuugi watched the lines emit a soft glow, he felt his friends' presence all around him. Atemu was right. His friends were always with him. A smile appeared on his face.

"You're right, Mou Hitori no Boku," he said happily. "How could I forget about the bond we all share? Thank you for reminding me."

"Anytime aibou," said Atemu. A small ray of light slowly began to grow brighter and bigger appearing behind him. It was time. He stood up and took a few steps back. "But it's time for me to go."

"Go?" asked a shocked Yuugi, trying to protect his eyes from the ever-increasing light. "But you just got here! How come you have to go?"

"Because I am only allowed to stay in this world for a short amount of time," answered Atemu. His spirit began to float away up the ray of light. "And there are things I must do before my time is up."

"B-But…will I ever see you again?" Yuugi pleaded. He had just got his old friend back. He didn't want him to leave just yet. Not this soon.

"Don't worry aibou," Atemu reassured. His spirit had almost completely disappeared. "Our paths will cross again. But there is one thing I must do before I say goodbye, or rather something I must say."

"Huh? What's that?"

"Merry Christmas!" Atemu laughed.

Yuugi was confused. It wasn't Christmas yet, it was still Christmas eve, wasn't it? He looked at his clock. 00:05am. So it was Christmas day! He laughed slightly.

"Same to you. Thank you…for everything."

"Anytime aibou. Goodbye."

The light continued to grow brighter, until it was too much for Yuugi's eyes to handle. He used his arms to shield his eyes from the blinding light. Then, as suddenly as it had come, the light disappeared. He looked around his now dark room. He couldn't see Atemu anywhere. He really was gone. He looked out of his window at the night sky, and saw that the bright star was still there, shinning away.

"Goodbye…Mou Hitori no Boku…"

-I-

Anzu bolted up in her bed with a scream, panting, cold sweat dripping from her body. All was quiet in her hotel room, apart from her own heavy breathing.

'_Oh man, that was the worst dream ever! But it felt so real. I hope it _was_ just a dream. Yuugi can't leave me. Not yet. I've already lost Mou Hitori no Yuugi…I mean, Atemu…I can't lose him too! I just can't! Huh?'_

Just then, Anzu felt a strange tingle from her hand. She looked down, and saw that the lines that represented the friendship bond were glowing. But that wasn't all. Even though she could sense all her friends, one seemed to be calling out to her.

"Yuugi!" she screamed once she figured out who it was. "Oh Yuugi, I hope you're OK. Hey!…What the?…What's going on!"

Anzu used her arms to protect her eyes from the sudden blinding light that was shinning into her room. But soon the light started to fade away, and as Anzu looked up she saw a figure standing in the middle of the light. Her heart skipped a beat, and her breath caught in her throat as she recognised who it was.

"Atemu!"

-I-

Jonouchi gasped and bolted up in his bed.

'_Oh man, what a horrible dream, but, why did it feel so real? Did…Did Honda have a dream similar to this? He was mumbling in his sleep earlier. And stranger things have happened to us these past few years…'_

Jonouchi looked around the room he and Honda were sharing to see if his friend was awake. He sighed as if annoyed once he saw where he was.

Honda had fallen out of bed-again-and was now in an interesting position on the floor. Jonouchi, not wanting to wake his sister in the next room about a weird dream, decided to wake Honda up instead. He wouldn't mind. Honda kept him up during the night anyway with his snoring.

"Honda…hey, Honda…" he said whilst poking him in the arm. "Are you awake bud?"

"…Gmpf…" came Honda's sleepy reply.

Jonouchi continued to try and wake him up. "Hey Honda…wake up…Honda…WAKE UP!"

Honda suddenly awoke, bolting up from where he was sleeping with a loud yell. This sudden reaction caused Jonouchi to scream too. Once the screaming was over, the shouting began.

"MAN! WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR!" Jonouchi yelled at Honda.

"ME!" Honda yelled back. "You were the one POKING ME!"

"OK OK! Calm down!" said Jonouchi, regaining control of his anger. "We don't want to wake up Shizuka now, do we?"

"You were the one who started yelling," Honda muttered to himself. Jonouchi ignored this comment.

An uncomfortable silence fell between the two friends. A cloud shifted position in the sky, allowing the moonlight to shine through into the room.

"So…why did you want to wake me up?" Honda asked after a few minutes had passed.

"I had a dream…a really scary dream," Jonouchi replied.

"A dream? About what?"

"Yuugi."

"Yuugi?"

"Hai. I dreamt that he was walking through some sort of portal, into the Shadow Realm. I tried calling out to him, but when he looked at me…he looked depressed…lonely and empty. He wouldn't listen to me! He walked straight into that damn portal into the darkness!"

Jonouchi clenched his fists to control his emotions. Honda looked at him, then sighed heavily.

"I had the same dream," he said after a while. "Only Yuugi was walking off a cliff into a dark void. You know what I think? I think that Yu-…er…what the hell is this?"

Honda stared at his hand. Lines had started to glow on the back.

"Er…Jou…are you seeing this?" Honda asked, completely freaked out.

"Yeah Honda, I'm seeing!" replied Jonouchi, whose hand also hand glowing lines on the back. "Can you feel that too?"

"Yeah, it's Yuugi."

"Man, I hope he's alright…AH!…WHAT'S GOING ON NOW!"

Both teens covered their eyes as a bright light suddenly began shinning onto the room. But as suddenly as it appeared, the light died away. As Honda and Jonouchi looked up, they saw a figure dressed in an Egyptian Pharaoh's attire standing before them. Both jaws hit the floor simultaneously.

"Atemu?" they both gasped as the figure before them became clearer.

The Pharaoh smiled down at his friends.

"Jonouchi, Honda, we need to talk," he said sternly.

"Why does all this weird stuff happen to us?" Jonouchi groaned.

-I-

The sun shone through Yuugi's window, lighting up his room, and causing him to awake. Slowly, he sat up in bed, stretched, and wiped the sleep away from his eyes. He looked out of his window, the events of last night still vivid in his mind. Did Atemu really visit him last night? Or was it all just a dream? It seemed real enough. Well, whatever it was, it seemed to have cheered him up.

Yuugi looked at his clock. 9am on 25th December. Christmas Day. He jumped out of bed and quickly got dressed in his black, sleeveless top, blue jacket and blue pants, with his belt around his waist. As soon as he was dressed, he rushed downstairs into the dinning room. He may be 19, but that doesn't mean that he was too old for presents on Christmas Day. He was still a child at heart.

As he entered the dinning room he saw that his grandfather had made him a special breakfast for Yuugi and himself. Yuugi noticed a small pile of presents under the Mutou's Christmas tree and immediately the familiar excitement of opening presents filled his heart.

"Wow jii-chan!" Yuugi gasped happily. "Did you do all of this?"

"The breakfast, yes," replied Sugoroku. "But most of the presents came in the mail, although one of them is from me." He gave his grandson a wink.

A large grin appeared on Yuugi's face. So his friend's hadn't forgotten him. This was great! (Though he should've known better.) Things were starting to look up.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Sugoroku asked as his grandson was just standing their, drooling over the presents before him. "They're not going to open themselves. Open them!"

"HAI!" shouted Yuugi as he dived into the presents.

Yuugi couldn't remember the last time he had smiled this much. Since his friends had left town, he had been depressed and lonely, but thanks to Atemu last night, all the sadness had disappeared.

Yuugi received some great gifts that morning, and loved them all! His grandfather had given him his own set of archaeology brushes and tools. Considering that he was due to go on another dig next month, this proved to be a very useful gift.

Jonouchi and Honda sent Yuugi their presents in the mail. Honda had made a photo album full of pictures of them all together. Jonouchi gave him some ultra rare Duel Monster cards, including one that looked like he had made it himself. Anzu, too, sent Yuugi a present. She sent him a new shirt (which she had made herself). It was similar to the one that he always wore, apart from the fact that this one that the symbol of the Sennen items on the front, and the words 'King of Games' printed on the back. Yuugi loved it so much, he put it on straight away.

Yuugi spent the rest of the day relaxing. The shop was closed, so he had nothing important to do. He called up various relatives to wish them a 'Merry Christmas', along with his friends. However, when he tried to call Anzu, Jonouchi and Honda, he found he could not. But Yuugi didn't give this a second thought. It was Christmas after all. They were bound to be spending it with their family, so were too busy to pick up their phones…right?

Later that evening, as the sun was just starting to set, the phone rang. Yuugi, who was going through his deck at the time, quickly jumped up from where he was sitting and went to pick it up, only to find that it stopped ringing as soon as he got to the phone.

"Oh, jii-chan must've picked it up," he said to himself, "I'd better go and see who it is."

Yuugi collected his cards, and put them in his deck pouch attached to his belt. He then made his way downstairs. He found his grandfather on the phone in the living room. It sounded like the conversation was just finishing.

"Hai…No he doesn't…City Halls…7pm…Hai, I'll make sure he's there…OK, thank you for calling…You too…goodbye!" Sugoroku hung up.

"Who was that, jii-chan?" asked Yuugi as his grandfather put the phone back on the receiver.

"AH! Yuugi!" screamed Sugoroku, jumping back. "You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Sorry jii-chan," Yuugi laughed. "But who was that on the phone?"

"On the phone?…err…well…it was…a-a-a duellist!"

"A duellist?" Yuugi cocked an eyebrow.

"Hai! That's right! A duellist! He…er…wants to duel you…tonight!" Sugoroku starting pushing Yuugi towards the door. "He said to meet him at City Halls at 7pm, so that gives you 15 minutes to get there. You'd better get a move on!"

"OK OK, I will! You can stop pushing me now!" said Yuugi as he tried to stop his grandfather. Once he had managed to get away from his grasp, he grabbed his duel disk and jacket and walked out the door, giving his grandfather a strange look. He was acting very weird.

As soon as Sugoroku heard the door close, he sighed heavily in relief.

"Phew! That was a close one. I almost gave away the surprise. Yuugi's sure going to be surprised as soon as he arrives at city halls! He he!

-I-

Yuugi was glad that he was outside. It may have been freezing cold, but by the looks of the clouds that were starting to come over, it was about to snow. As he walked down the streets, his thoughts came to his grandfather. He was acting very strange after that phone call. Yuugi knew his grandfather was up to something, but what?

As he turned the corner, Yuugi noticed a large group of people that gathered on the other side of the road. By the looks of it, they seemed to gathered around some sort of celebrity, for there were flashing cameras everywhere, and people running up with pen and paper in their hands. There were various shouts of 'can you sign this please?' and 'can you pose for a picture for my daughter?'

Yuugi tried to see who the celebrity was, but found that he could only just see the very top of their head, due to the tall group of people. From what he could see however, was that the celebrity seemed to have brown hair.

"I haven't got time to play 'guess the celeb'" Yuugi said as he started to walk away. He looked at his watch. "I've only got 5 minutes to get to the duel." Upon seeing the time, Yuugi quicken his pace towards his destination.

A few minutes later, Yuugi arrived at City Halls with one minute to spare. As he climbed the steps to the main entrance, he thought that this was a strange place to hold a duel. City Halls were usually used for large meetings, or people could rent out one of the halls inside for a large party. Why did someone want to duel him there?

Yuugi came to the front doors, and opened them, walking inside. Strange that they were unlocked. Did his opponent rent out one of the halls just for this one duel?

It was pitch black inside. Yuugi couldn't see a thing. He called out into the darkness, hoping that someone would answer him. No one did. After standing there for about another minute hoping that his opponent would show up, whoever they were, Yuugi gave up. He was about to turn around and leave, when the lights suddenly came on.

"Surprise! Merry Christmas Yuugi!" various voices shouted happily.

Yuugi's eyes soon got used to the light, and when he looked up, he couldn't help but gasp.

Gathered in the brightly decorated hall-complete with a 'Merry Christmas Everyone' banner- were all his friends: Mai, Ryou, Seto (though Yuugi had a feeling that Mokuba had something to do with this), Otogi, Shizuka, his grandfather (though how he got there before he did Yuugi did not know), everyone was there. But even though he was happy to see them all, he was happier to see the two people walking up to him.

"Hey there pal!" exclaimed Jonouchi.

"What's up buddy?" asked Honda as the pair stopped in front of their best friend.

"Jonouchi! Honda! You're here!" said Yuugi, teary eyes. He embraced his two best friends with a friendly hug. "But how?…Why?…"

"You didn't think we'd let you celebrate Christmas on your own, did you?" said Honda, winking at Jonouchi.

"Yeah," said the blonde, returning the wink. "We couldn't let you have all the fun, or food!"

"Whatever," laughed Yuugi, "I'm just so glad that you're here."

Jonouchi smiled down at his best friend. _'Good old Atemu. Thanks for reminding me and Honda about being a good friend to Yuugi.'_

"Me too Yuugi. Now, lets get this party started!"

-I-

The party was well underway and everyone was enjoying themselves, especially Yuugi. He had to admit, this was one of the best parties he'd ever been to. Everyone was laughing, dancing, and generally having a good time. Even Seto seemed to be having a good time, even though he tried very hard to cover it up. But as Yuugi looked around the hall, he felt that something, or rather someone was missing.

Anzu

No party was complete without her. Yuugi wished so much that she was here. But he knew deep down that she couldn't. After all, she was in America. She couldn't exactly drop everything and travel all the way to Japan for one party. Plus by the time she landed in Domino the party would be over anyway. This only depressed Yuugi more.

Yuugi soon snapped out of his thoughts when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see Jonouchi and Honda looking very smug.

"Yuugi, can you come outside with us for a moment?" Honda asked

"Yeah, we…er…got to show you something," said Jonouchi as he started to push Yuugi towards the door.

"Err…sure guys…" Yuugi answered, feeling that he didn't have any choice.

Even though Yuugi agreed to go with them, Jonouchi and Honda still continued to push him towards the door, as if they wanted him outside as quickly as possible. _'Strange. They're acting as strange as grandpa was earlier. What are they up to?'_

When the 3 teens finally got outside, the two tallest boys of the trio were quick to make sure that the doors were closed behind them. Yuugi stood there watching his friends, arms crossed, his foot tapping slightly.

"OK guys, what are you up to?" he asked.

"Nani? Us?" Jonouchi said innocently, "This wasn't our idea."

"Hai," said Honda, signalling to someone behind Yuugi to come forward. "It was all _her _idea."

Honda pointed to someone behind Yuugi. Confused, Yuugi turned around and saw the last person he expected to see.

"Anzu?"

"Hi Yuugi," Anzu spoke softly as she stepped forward.

Yuugi starting walking towards Anzu, as if he was in a dream. He couldn't believe it. Anzu was here, right in front of him. It was as if all his wishes had come true.

"I can't believe you're here," said Yuugi, teary eyed (once again). He stopped in front of Anzu and saw that she, too, had tears in her eyes. "But why are you in Japan? I thought you were in America."

"I was," Anzu replied. "But you remember when I said in my last letter that I was to star in this big show? Well, it turns out that the show is right here in Domino!"

"O-Oh" was all the Yuugi said, disappointed. He had expected her to say something else. _'I guess that explains the group of people earlier. That must've been Anzu they were crowded around.'_

Honda eyed the pair curiously from near the hall doors. He knew what was coming next.

"Hey Jou," whispered Honda. "Maybe we should leave them alone for a while."

"Yeah, good point," Jonouchi whispered back, slowly creeping backwards. "Lets leave them to 'catch up'"

Honda sniggered at Jonouchi's remark. Then he and Jonouchi snuck inside, making sure to close the doors quickly and quietly behind them.

"Hey guys, where's Yuugi?" asked Ryou, making Jonouchi and Honda jump.

"Oh…er…he's outside with…a…special gift!" stuttered Jonouchi, before he and Honda darted away.

Ryou watched them walking away, both of them snickering loudly. Even though he was slightly confused, and worried (why _was_ Yuugi out in the cold?), Ryou put it in the back of his mind, and continued to enjoy the party. After all, his favourite Christmas song had just started playing.

-I-

Anzu sensed Yuugi's disappointment, and knew that she had blown it. _'Great job Anzu. Now what are you going to do? Atemu told you that Yuugi was unhappy, and you've just gone and made things worse…hey! I know what to do!'_

"You know Yuugi," said Anzu softly, moving closer to Yuugi. "That wasn't the only reason I came back."

"It wasn't?" asked Yuugi. His and Anzu's faces began to move closer and closer together, his body acting on it's own.

"Iie. There was something else I had to do. Something very important…" Their faces were now inches apart, the gap continuing to close.

"Really? And what would that be?"

Yuugi's question was soon answered when Anzu placed her lips on top of his own. Yuugi was a little surprised at first, but he quickly got over the shock and kissed her back. Their first kiss, right under the stars in the night sky. As their kiss deepen, Yuugi wrapped his arms around Anzu's waist. Anzu reacted by placing her arms around Yuugi's neck, pulling him closer to her body…

Unfortunately, they soon had to break the kiss due to a lack of oxygen.

"Wow…" was all that Yuugi could say

"Hai…wow," said Anzu. She smiled dreamily. "You don't know how long I've been wanting to do that Yuugi. And you don't know how long I've been wanting to say…I love you Yuugi…"

Did he hear right? Did Anzu just say she loved him? Him? Yuugi Mutou? Suddenly, the world seemed a better place to live.

"I love you too Anzu," Yuugi said dreamily. He stroked Anzu's soft hair away from her eyes. "For as long as I can remember, and I know exactly how you feel."

Anzu laughed slightly. She reached out for Yuugi's hand, and held it with her own. The two looked at each other, feeling as if they were on cloud nine, until the music from the hall dragged them both back down to earth. Plus it had started to snow.

"Do you want to go inside and see everyone?" asked Yuugi, giving Anzu's hand a comforting squeeze.

"Sure, why not?" said Anzu, returning the squeeze. "As long as my first dance is with you."

Yuugi smiled at Anzu. He must be the happiest guy in the world. He and Anzu were together, all his friends were here…well, almost all of them.

Yuugi looked up at the night sky, careful not to get snow in his eyes, as he and Anzu walked back towards the hall. He smiled when he saw a shooting star fly across the sky.

'_Thank you, Mou Hitori no Boku. I don't know how you did it, but thanks for bringing my friends back. I just wish you could be here with us. Goodbye, my friend.'_

-I-

As Yuugi and Anzu walked towards the hall, Atemu watched them from the sky, a smile on his face.

"Anytime aibou. I am always happy to help. But this is not goodbye, for we will meet again. Sooner than you think…"

-I-

The End

-I-

So, what do you think? Is it any better? Or is it worse? Please R&R and let me know!


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